Boston Pops bucks the classics

Also: Police clear MIT encampment in early hours; Boston's penguin boom [Donate ❤️]( [View in Browser](  May 10, 2024 ☁️ Mostly cloudy, with a high near 57 and a slight chance of rain this morning. Good Morning Boston, It's Friday — and the magnolia blossoms [still look stunning]( on the ground. If you still need to pick up some petals for mom this weekend, consider sending [Winston Flowers from WBUR](. If you [order by noon tomorrow]( you can get one of four different options delivered throughout Greater Boston by Sunday, and you'll support our local journalism in the process. Now, to the news: - Pops rock: The Boston Pops open their spring season tonight — and there's a growing shift to appeal to people beyond just classical music fans. Pops conductor Keith Lockhart gave a preview of the lineup this week on Radio Boston. "It's a lot more about inclusivity and just making people realize that this is a great public institution that was founded to serve everyone," Lockhart said, though he joked, "I do look at it and go, 'How am I going to do all that in the next five weeks?' " Here's a look at some of the new and notable performances: - [Harry Connick Jr.]( (May 10-11): For the first time since 2001, the famous singer and pianist returns to Symphony Hall tonight and tomorrow to perform with the Pops. - [Encanto]( (May 11 and May 18): Symphony Hall will screen the animated Disney hit movie in two Saturday matinees, with the Pops orchestra live-performing [the catchy score](. - [Queen]( (May 15-16): Mark Martell — who provided the vocals for the film "Bohemian Rhapsody" — collaborates with the Pops for two Queen tribute concerts next week. "You close your eyes, and it could very well be Freddie Mercury," said Lockhart (who said Queen's "Night at the Opera" was his first rock album). - [Jazz night]( 22-23): Kicking off during the pandemic, the Pops' "Roots of Jazz" series continues with saxophonist Branford Marsalis (yes, that's the brother of [Wynton Marsalis]( with a cameo by [viral piano phenom]( Jesús Molina. - [Jurassic Park]( (May 24-25): Steven Spielberg's blockbuster will be projected on screen, with the orchestra performing former Pops conductor John Williams’ iconic score live. The three-show Memorial Day Weekend run includes a Saturday matinee. - [Pride night]( (June 1): The Pops' first Pride Night will feature drag star Thorgy Thor, a former contestant on "RuPaul's Drag Race," who is also a trained violinist. "She will be playing with us on stage, playing solo works with our concert master and all sorts of fun things like that," Lockhart said. - Up next: The Pops' [summer Tanglewood concert schedule]( also branches out. There will be popular Broadway songs, more John Williams tributes and collabs with indie rockers like Trey Anastasio, Beck and Dispatch. - While you were sleeping: MIT's pro-Palestinian encampment has been torn down. Police officers moved in shortly after 4 a.m. this morning to clear the tents and arrest protesters. Organizers said only about 10 people were inside the camp at the time. [Click here for more updates]( on the development. - The early morning sweep comes after [those at the encampment clashed with police yesterday during a rally on MIT's campus](. MIT said "fewer than 10" people were arrested for blocking traffic. The university has also begun suspending encampment demonstrators. - The fallout in Amherst: Award-winning author Colson Whitehead has withdrawn as UMass Amherst's commencement speaker, citing the university's [decision to call the police to break up a peaceful, pro-Palestinian encampment on campus](. Whitehead called the response, which led to more than 130 arrests, "[a shameful act]( - He's not the only critic. UMass's student government issued a vote of "no confidence" in Chancellor Javier Reyes. Rep. Jim McGovern, who represents Amherst, also called the response concerning. New England Public Media has [more here](. - Look up: New Englanders may actually be able to see the Northern Lights tonight. Due to unusually strong solar flares from a [rare cluster]( of sunspots, the [visible range of the aurora]( is forecasted to cover much of the United States. The Boston Globe [reports]( those as far south as the Cape may be able to see the spectacle overnight Friday. (Whether or not the clouds clear enough will be the big issue.) - Pro-tip: If you still have your eclipse glasses, you may also be able to [see the giant sunspot]( the day. P.S.— What Boston-area singer's clothing is featured at a new Museum of Fine Arts exhibit? [Take our Boston News Quiz]( and test your knowledge of this week's stories. Nik DeCosta-Klipa Editor, Newsletters  The Rundown [Graduating students warily approach commencements after protests roil campuses]( Universities in greater Boston that had pro-Palestinian protest encampments will be holding commencement ceremonies in the coming weeks. Graduating seniors have mixed feelings about the occasion. [Read more.]( [Graduating students warily approach commencements after protests roil campuses]( Universities in greater Boston that had pro-Palestinian protest encampments will be holding commencement ceremonies in the coming weeks. Graduating seniors have mixed feelings about the occasion. [Read more.]( [Father sentenced to minimum 56 years on murder, other charges in Harmony Montgomery's death]( Adam Montgomery, convicted of killing his 5-year-old daughter, has been sentenced to a minimum of 56 years in prison on murder and other charges. That sentence will be added on to the a 32 1/2-year sentence on unrelated gun charges, effectively amounting to a life sentence. [Read more.]( [Father sentenced to minimum 56 years on murder, other charges in Harmony Montgomery's death]( Adam Montgomery, convicted of killing his 5-year-old daughter, has been sentenced to a minimum of 56 years in prison on murder and other charges. That sentence will be added on to the a 32 1/2-year sentence on unrelated gun charges, effectively amounting to a life sentence. [Read more.]( [RFK Jr. is not alone. More than a billion people have parasitic worms]( Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. spoke about a time when, as he put it, "A worm ... got into my brain and ate a portion of it and then died." Here's a global perspective on these worms. [Read more.]( [RFK Jr. is not alone. More than a billion people have parasitic worms]( Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. spoke about a time when, as he put it, "A worm ... got into my brain and ate a portion of it and then died." Here's a global perspective on these worms. [Read more.]( [Their batteries hurt the environment, but EVs still beat gas cars. Here's why]( NPR listeners wrote to ask whether the environmental harm from building EVs "cancels out" the cars' climate benefits. Experts say the answer is clear. [Read more.]( [Their batteries hurt the environment, but EVs still beat gas cars. Here's why]( NPR listeners wrote to ask whether the environmental harm from building EVs "cancels out" the cars' climate benefits. Experts say the answer is clear. [Read more.]( [Wynn suspends casino expansion in dispute over taxes and payments to Everett]( Wynn Resorts has suspended its planned expansion of the Encore Boston Harbor casino in Everett, saying it can't come to terms over things like taxes and impact fees with the city of Everett. [Read more.]( [Wynn suspends casino expansion in dispute over taxes and payments to Everett]( Wynn Resorts has suspended its planned expansion of the Encore Boston Harbor casino in Everett, saying it can't come to terms over things like taxes and impact fees with the city of Everett. [Read more.]( Anything Else? Fifteen-foot high flower sculptures have bloomed on Northeastern's campus, like something from the land of Oz. [Check out photos of the stalks and learn about the reason behind them here](. Rhode Island is piloting [an app developed by a Boston-based tech company to offers people struggling with addiction small rewards]( like gift cards or vouchers, for staying clean. But some question whether the app can reach the people most in need of services. At Brandeis University, a mother-daughter duo is [working to preserve the largest collection of Yiddish and Jewish-related films in the world](. (You can see a collection of them at the Coolidge Corner Theater this weekend as part of a 10-day film festival.) Award-winning chef and Oleana owner Ana Sortun spoke with our Cognoscenti team about where she feels most at home: in her kitchen, her restaurants and at her organic farm in Sudbury. “To me, home is about being deeply connected to a sense of place. So, being really connected to land, through food, makes sense in my heart,” [she says in this conversation](. What We're Reading 📚 - ‘Using the tools at my disposal’: JFK’s grandson explains anti-RFK Jr. Instagram posts ([The Boston Globe]( - AI is disrupting the local news industry. Will it unlock growth or be an existential threat? ([Poynter]( - Mass. House leaders scored big in chamber’s closed-door budget process. You just wouldn’t know it. ([The Boston Globe](  Tell Me Something Good [Boston is about to have a lot more penguins]( There was surprisingly a lot of penguin news coming out of Boston on Thursday, thanks to the New England Aquarium and Franklin Park Zoo. [Read more.]( [Boston is about to have a lot more penguins]( There was surprisingly a lot of penguin news coming out of Boston on Thursday, thanks to the New England Aquarium and Franklin Park Zoo. [Read more.]( Listen: The Common wraps up its series on psychedelics with [an interview with a lead researcher on MDMA-assisted therapy.]( Play: [WBUR's daily mini crossword.]( Can you keep your streak going? Before you go: [A wicked awesome proposal.]( 😎 Forward to a friend. 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